New Advisor Insights research shows AI moving beyond experimentation into everyday advisor workflows, with RIAs further ahead in adoption and use
Time saved by advisors using AI
CONCORD, Calif., Sept. 15, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — More than half of financial advisors who have adopted artificial intelligence (AI) report saving at least four hours each week – the equivalent of more than 200 hours, or 26 eight-hour working days, over the course of a year – according to AssetMark’s new 2026 Advisor Insights: Artificial Intelligence Report.
The findings suggest that AI in wealth management is entering a new phase. Eighty-five percent of advisors have adopted AI-integrated solutions within their practices to some degree, and 80% expect their use to increase over the next 12 months. The research indicates the next phase will be defined less by whether advisors use AI and more by how deeply they integrate it into everyday workflows.
“The AI conversation in wealth management is moving past adoption. The question now is whether AI is actually making advisors better at their jobs,” said Alex Pape, Chief Product & Technology Officer at AssetMark. “Giving an advisor four or more hours back each week is meaningful, but the real opportunity is what they can do with that capacity: spend more time with clients, apply their judgment to more complex problems and focus on the work where human expertise matters most.”
AI Is Moving Into the Advisor Workflow
Among advisors who have adopted AI, virtually all report at least some weekly time savings, including 39% who save four to less than eight hours and 15% who save eight hours or more.
Those gains appear alongside broad use across existing advisor workflows. Among AI adopters, 45% use AI to generate meeting notes or summaries, 43% to automate performance reports or dashboards, 42% to summarize research materials, 42% to run or monitor risk analysis and 40% to automate workflows and scheduling.
The breadth of these use cases suggests AI is becoming integrated through the work itself rather than through a single defining application. And use is likely to deepen: 85% of current AI adopters expect to increase their usage over the next year.
Advisors also see value extending beyond efficiency. Half identify improved work quality as a benefit of AI, while 43% cite business growth, 41% improved client experience or satisfaction and 40% increased firm revenue. Together, the findings suggest advisors increasingly view AI as a capacity multiplier that can support better work and create room for higher-value activity.
RIAs Report Deeper AI Adoption and Use The research also reveals meaningful differences by affiliation model. Ninety-one percent of registered investment advisers (RIAs) have adopted AI-integrated solutions, compared with 81% of independent financial advisors affiliated with broker-dealers. RIAs are also more likely to expect their use to increase during the next 12 months – 87% compared with 75%.
The gap extends beyond adoption into how AI is being used. Among AI adopters, 49% of RIAs use AI to draft client communications, compared with 30% of BD-affiliated independent advisors; 48% use it for workflow and scheduling automation, compared with 35%; and 41% use it to stress test portfolios, compared with 25%.
The findings indicate that the transition from AI availability to deeper integration is occurring at different speeds across affiliation models, with RIAs currently demonstrating broader adoption across several areas of day-to-day work.
AI Capabilities Are Becoming Part of the Advisor Value Proposition
As AI becomes more integrated into advisor practices, access to competitive capabilities is also emerging as a consideration in firm fit. Sixty-nine percent of advisors would consider switching firms if their current firm’s AI capabilities lagged competitors. That figure rises to 78% among advisors managing $500 million or more.
At the same time, deeper use does not mean advisors expect AI to operate independently. Advisors remain most cautious about delegating client-facing work, portfolio decisions and compliance. The emerging model is one of broader AI use behind the scenes while advisors continue to review and interpret information, make decisions and lead client conversations.
“Advisors are under increasing pressure to deliver more personalized service while managing greater complexity,” said Michael Kim, Chief Executive Officer of AssetMark. “This research reinforces the importance of technology that creates meaningful capacity, fits naturally into the way advisors work and keeps their judgment at the center of the client experience.”
For more information, access the 2026 AssetMark Advisor Insights: Artificial Intelligence Report.
About the Study
The 2026 AssetMark Advisor Insights Survey was conducted online from June 24 to July 7, 2026 among 400 U.S.-based financial advisors, including 152 registered investment advisers (RIAs) and 248 independent financial advisors affiliated with broker-dealers. Existing AssetMark clients were excluded from the study. The margin of error for the full sample is ±4.9 percentage points at the 95% confidence level; subgroup findings should be interpreted with appropriate caution.
About AssetMark
AssetMark, Inc. operates a wealth management platform with a mission to help financial advisors and their clients. AssetMark, together with its affiliates AssetMark Trust Company, Voyant, and Adhesion Wealth Advisor Solutions, serves advisors at every stage of their journey with flexible, purpose-built solutions, powered by its innovative technology platform. The company equips advisors with planning tools, investment solutions, and operational capabilities to help deliver better investor outcomes by enhancing their productivity, profitability, and client satisfaction.
Founded in 1996, AssetMark has over 1,100 employees and serves more than 10,000 financial advisors and over 340,000 investor households. As of June 30, 2026, the firm had over $180 billion in assets across its platforms. AssetMark, Inc. is a registered investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
For more information, please visit www.assetmark.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.
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